This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Aug. 15, 2012 - Lawyers for Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder and several other top Republicans have proposed four alternatives to the ballot summary they are contesting in court, which deals with the General Assembly's effort to bar Gov. Jay Nixon or his administration from setting up a health insurance exchange.
The alternatives were filed in Cole County Circuit Court on Wednesday, in the supporting documents filed to back up the suit that Kinder and his allies filed against Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, to challenge her office's ballot-summary wording of the General Assembly's proposal, now set for the Nov. 6 ballot.
Carnahan's wording states: "Shall Missouri law be amended to deny individuals, families and small businesses the ability to access affordable health care plans through a state-based health benefit exchange unless authorized by statute, initiative or referendum or through an exchange operated by the federal government as required by the federal health care act?"
Kinder and his allies contend in their filings that Carnahan's summary wording of the legislative proposal is "blatantly false, deceptive and intended to mislead the people about what the ballot proposal would do, and would not do. As such, it is neither true nor impartial, but instead will create prejudice against the proposed measure."
Carnahan has said her wording is fair and accurate, as required by state law.
(Start of update) The suit asks that a judge issue a temporary restraining order that would bar Carnahan from certifying the state's Nov. 6 ballot until the ballot summary has been changed.
Time is of the essence, since absentee balloting is to begin Sept. 25. Which means the ballots would have been printed earlier. (End of update)
The Republican-controlled General Assembly put the proposal on the ballot because it wants voters to require that either the legislature or voters approve the establishment of an exchange, which is supposed to be in place by 2014 as part of the federal Affordable Care Act.
Under state law, the General Assembly could have written its own ballot summary, but it declined to do so, thus leaving the task to Carnahan, a Democrat not seeking re-election.
A health insurance exchange is supposed to allow uninsured people to purchase their own policies at lower rates than they might be able to on the open market. Legislative leaders have said they will oppose setting up an exchange, as a show of opposition to the ACA. They also have acted to block Nixon's administration from taking preliminary steps.
Assuming the Affordable Care Act stands, the federal government will set up exchanges in states that decline to do so.
Kinder and his allies contend in their court filing that the fact that the federal government could set up an exchange means that Carnahan's use of the word "deny'' is wrong.
Wednesday's court filings propose four alternatives to Carnahan's ballot summary.
Kinder and his allies assert in the court filings that each of their proposed alternatives "meet the statutory criteria of setting forth 'a true and impartial statement of the purposes of the proposed measure in language neither intentionally argumentative nore likely to create prejudice either for or against the proposed measure.' "
The proposed alternatives are as follows:
-- "Shall Missouri law be amended to prohibit the Governor and or any unelected state bureaucrat from implementing provisions of the Health Care Act unless authorized by a vote of the people or by the legislature?"
-- "Shall Missouri law be amended to prohibit the Governor or any state agency, from establishing or operating state-based health insurance exchanges unless authorized by a vote of the people or by the legislature?"
-- "Shall Missouri law be amended to require a voter approved initiative petition, voter referendum or legislative act, for the Governor or any state agency, to establish programs, rules or policies to create or operate state-based health insurance exchanges?"
-- "Shall Missouri law be amended to prohibit the Governor or any state agency from establishing programs or promulgating any rules or policies to establish, create or operate state-based health insurance exchanges unless the exchange is created by legislative act, or voter approved initiative petition or referendum?"
